Crystal Lake’s Snake Tribute Is the Ultimate Friday the 13th Easter Egg
Peacock’s Crystal Lake includes many callbacks to the Friday the 13th franchise, including that poor, doomed snake.
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Key Takeaways
- Crystal Lake includes a direct callback to the infamous snake scene from the original Friday the 13th, reflecting showrunner Brad Caleb Kane’s admiration for the franchise and horror filmmaking history.
- The original 1980 snake scene became notorious because a real snake was killed on camera before modern Hollywood animal protection standards were established.
- In Crystal Lake, Pamela Voorhees encounters a snake but safely releases it into the woods, intentionally reversing the original scene.
Warning: Major spoilers for Peacock's Crystal Lake series below!
All eight episodes of Peacock's Crystal Lake are streaming on Peacock. And Friday the 13th fans are noticing showrunner Brad Caleb Kane has loaded his prequel series about Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini) and her son Jason (Callum Vinson) with callbacks and Easter eggs, including that infamous snake from the first film.
Read more, below, about the shocking snake-killing scene from the first Friday the 13th film and how it's honored in the first episode of Crystal Lake.
RELATED: Everything to Know About Crystal Lake, Peacock's Friday the 13th Prequel Series
About the Friday the 13th snake scene
For all the gory slashing and dicing in Friday the 13th, there’s one scene to this day that audiences cite as one that lingers long after viewing: the snake-killing scene. It takes place in camp counselor Alice's (Adrienne King) cabin after she discovers a snake slithering under her bed. Freaked out, she grabs her pals to help her get rid of it. Overly-enthusiastic Bill (Harry Crosby) even runs in with a machete. Trying to draw it out, Bill chops up the snake as the camera lingers on it writhing to death.
Filmed before Hollywood animal protection laws were passed, the snake was actually killed, as confirmed in the 2012 documentary, Crystal Lake Memories.
Breaking down the Friday the 13th snake callback in Crystal Lake
In the first episode of Crystal Lake, Kane honors that movie snake’s service with a more benevolent scene involving Camp Crystal Lake cook, Pamela Voorhees. She discovers a very healthy snake in her pantry and instead of pulling a Bill, she collects the snake in a bucket and sets it free in the woods.
“Yes, it’s a direct nod,” Kane confirmed to Deadline. “But we don’t actually kill a snake in ours. No, no animals were harmed in the making of Crystal Lake. Some hippies might have been harmed in the making of Crystal Lake, but no animals.”
Kane recently told NBC Insider that first and foremost he, too, is a super-fan of the Friday the 13th franchise. "I am that little kid who learned to love film and horror, practical special effects, and the thrills you get sitting in a theater full of people experiencing that through Friday the 13th,” he said.
RELATED: All The Friday the 13th Easter Eggs in Crystal Lake: How They're Connected [SPOILERS]
